Herschel : Symphonia nr. 22 in A minor : Clarinet II in Bb

Composer: William Herschel (1738 - 1822)
Forces: 2Ob.2Hn.2Vn.Va.Vc.

Allegro - Adagio ma non molto - Presto

Herschel completed this symphony in July, 1763 in Harrogate.

Alternative horn parts are provided both for horns in C (Herschel's specification) and for horns in F. The score survives in a version for horns and oboes, but the extant set of parts also includes parts for clarinets which essentially summarise both the horn and oboe parts, and which may have been drawn up to enable performance by lesser forces. A separate alternative score has been prepared to facilitate performance by a reduced orchestra.

Herschel's symphonies remained unpublished in his lifetime and were therefore rendered only under his personal direction, and only by the forces available to him. In the relevant period (during his employments in Northumberland, Durham and Yorkshire) his pools of available players were at comparatively small town music associations, with a small military band, and at a house party with royal guests. On Aug. 18th, 1761 he wrote from one of his more important engagements, in Newcastle, that "I have the direction of the music, and we make up a fairly good band of about 16 persons". This number would seem slightly larger than the forces he could generally muster, and consequently it would seem that he had, at best, only about a dozen string players at any rendition. The varying numbers of wind (and percussion) players prescribed for the different symphonies are an accurate indication of the supplementary forces available to him at any given composition's date.

Clarinet II in Bb: 1.00 euro for unlimited copies

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